National Day of Remembrance & Action on Islamophobia

Think for Actions request’s the government to designate January 29th as National Day of Remembrance & Action on Islamophobia

Calgary, AB, August 23, 2018 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Hate crimes against Muslims in Canada have increased by 60% from 2014 to 2015, and 253% over four years, from up from 45 in 2012 to 159 in 2015. This attitude was one of the major factors that lead to the death of six and injured 19 others when Alexandre Bissonnette opened fire in a Quebec Masjid on January 29, 2017. When Iqra Khalid, a member of parliament, tabled a motion before the House of Commons called Motion M103, she received more than 61,000 hate messages in 48 hours. Canadian Community Engagement Study 2018 concludes:

2/3rd of Canadians believe that the atmosphere towards Muslims in Canada is negative

2/3rd of Canadian’s want the government to invest resources towards reducing and eventually eliminating systemic racism and discrimination on religious grounds;

2/3 of Muslims have personally experienced discrimination due to their race or ethnicity in the last 5 years; almost 1/2 of the incidences were verbal abuse or attack;

82% Muslims believe that discrimination against Canadian Muslims has increased in the last 5 years;

Kohawar Khan, vice president Think for Actions says, “we support the call from National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM), with the support of over 70 Canadian Muslim associations & organizations and over two-dozen community partners to designate January 29th as a National Day of Remembrance and Action on Islamophobia”.

This call is based on precedent. Every December 6th, there is the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence against Women to mark the anniversary of the 1989 shooting massacre of 14 women at l'École Polytechnique de Montréal.

Chairperson for the national think tank, Think for Actions, Dr. Mukarram Zaidi says, “Sound research, open dialog and discussion will challenge ignorance by addressing fear”.

To commemorate the first anniversary of this tragic shooting, Think for Actions in partnership with National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM) and many other organizations will be hosting a vigil to remember the innocent lives lost and stand in solidarity with the community in downtown Calgary, in front at of city Hall.